Vinyl and Collectibles reviewed and geeked about!

Oh, I get it! David Bowie – Aladdin Sane

Ziggy invades America, less a space alien and more a genuine rock star. While it is easy for most of us to see the classic The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars as the peak of a string of amazing records, it was Aladdin Sane that solidified his rock god status and was the real beginning to his conquest of the States.

So now it has been 42 years since its release, and I’m searching through the various vinyl editions that can be had, when I come across these pieces of magical wax.

Here I was thinking that a 180 gram re-master would be the best thing I can get, but… what the hell is the story with this little gem.

You see, I got it new at a very nice price which to me meant it was a 2013 version, but it has bonus material from the 2003 30th anniversary set. Well, it seems that it has sailed over from Japan and is a promo copy for 2013 that is not dated. According to Discogs, the only two coloured vinyl disc version of Aladdin Sane to see official release came from Japan on an “undetermined date.” What is weird about it, is that for such a cool limited imported promo pack, the price on e-bay has remained relatively low. In fact, there seems to be a few such Bowie albums on the market that fill a similar niche. If your a Bowie fan that wants stuff on vinyl, check it out.

With Bowie, you have to be careful. There are a lot of “unofficial” releases, especially Hunky Dory. While I haven’t heard them, I’m going to guess that these kind of releases are ripped from CD and put on vinyl, rather than the original analog tapes. If that is the case, just stick with the CD.